Pages

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Horatia
patted The General’s nose and fed him an apple. By the time the last of it had
disappeared, the clip of a horse’s hooves came from the drive. She peeped out
of the barn door and saw the baron, tall in the saddle, riding towards the
house.

Horatia
stepped out and beckoned him. He caught sight of her and rode towards the
stables then dismounted and led the horse inside.

“Simon,
good fellow,” he said warmly. “I came to thank you again. I am indebted to
you.”

“No
need for that, my lord,” she said. “Everything’s right and tight here as it
happens.” She turned her back to lead his horse into one of the stalls. Seizing
a brush, she bent and swept it over the horse’s flanks.

He
came to rest an arm on the stall door. “I am relieved. If you had lost your
job, I was going to ask you to work for me.”

She
straightened to brush the horse’s back, confident of the poor light. “Mighty
good of you, my lord. But not at all necessary.”

“Eh bien, merci encore.” He turned towards the door.

Relieved
it had gone so well, Horatia stepped out from behind the horse. She looked up
to see if he had gone and found him watching her with his arms folded.

The
elation left her, and she took a deep, shaky breath.

“Did
you really think you could go on fooling me?” A note of outrage lay beneath the
humorous tone in his voice. “How many people around here have red hair like
yours?”

“My
hair’s not red,” she said, incensed. “It’s chestnut.”

“I
wondered how far you would carry this ruse, Miss Cavendish.”

She
backed into an empty stall as he strode towards her.

He
followed her inside. Reaching over, he whipped off her hat, and her hair came
loose and tumbled around her face. “So, what do you have to say in your
defense?”

“Nothing,
my lord.” Horatia lifted her chin, her heart pounding loud in her ears. She
chewed her lip. She would have to brazen this out.

Annoyed
blue eyes stared into hers. “I do not like to be toyed with. I thought there
was something wrong with me.”

“Pardon?”

“Watching
you bend over in those breeches. Zut! From the first, I felt a strong
attraction to you. And then, when I saw you dressed as a woman, I understood.”

“You
knew it was me at the dance?” She scowled. “And you deliberately teased me?”

“Don’t
you think you deserved it?” He seized her shoulders and gave them a shake. “You
tricked me. Why?”

She
swallowed. “No trickery, my lord. I was dressed this way when I found you, if
you recall. I needed to keep up the pretense.”

He
shrugged. “But why do you dress like that?”

She
couldn’t explain her restlessness to him and tossed her head. “I prefer to ride
astride.”

He
raised a brow. “You like a strong beast moving beneath you?”

She
bristled at the insult. “I like to ride alone.” He made it sound as if she
gained some sort of indecent enjoyment from the exercise. Her face heated. To
ride astride was unfeminine, she knew, but that fact had never bothered her
before.

“But
to do so places you in peril.”

Horatia
drew herself up. “I can handle myself as well as a man.”

“You
believe that, do you?” His gaze flicked over her. What was he thinking? She
quivered under his scrutiny.

Blurb:

London, 1816. A handsome baron. A faux
betrothal. And Horatia's plan to join the London literary set takes a dangerous
turn. Now that the war with France has ended, Baron Guy Fortescue arrives in
England to claim his inheritance, abandoned over thirty years ago when his
father fled to France after killing a man in a duel. When Guy is set upon by
footpads in London, a stranger, Lord Strathairn, rescues and befriends him. But
while travelling to his country estate, Guy is again attacked. He escapes only
to knock himself out on a tree branch. Aspiring poet Horatia Cavendish has taken
to riding her father's stallion, "The General", around the countryside of
Digswell dressed as a groom. She has become bored of her country life and longs
to escape to London to pursue her desire to become part of the London literary
set. When she discovers Guy lying unconscious on the road, the two are forced to
take shelter for the night in a hunting lodge. After Guy discovers her ruse, a
friendship develops between them. Guy suspects his relative, Eustace Fennimore
is behind the attacks on his life. He has been ensconced in Rosecroft Hall
during the family's exile and will become the heir should Guy die. Horatia
refuses to believe her godfather, Eustace, is responsible. But when Guy proposes
a faux betrothal to give him more time to discover the truth, she agrees. Secure
in the knowledge that his daughter will finally wed, Horatia's father allows her
to visit her blue-stocking aunt in London. But Horatia's time spent in London
proves to be anything but a literary feast, for a dangerous foe plots Guy's
demise. She is determined to keep alive her handsome fiance, who has proven more
than willing to play the part of her lover even as he resists her attempts to
save him.

About Maggi...

Maggi Andersen lives in the countryside outside Sydney,
Australia, with her lawyer husband and the cat that rules them. After gaining a
BA in English and an MA in Creative Writing, and raising three children, Maggi
now indulges her passion for writing.

She writes in several genres, contemporary and historical
romances and young adult novels. You’ll find adventure and elements of danger
in everyone.

More information on her website: http://www.maggiandersenauthor.com

Maggi Andersen lives in the countryside outside Sydney,
Australia, with her lawyer husband and the cat that rules them. After gaining a
BA in English and an MA in Creative Writing, and raising three children, Maggi
now indulges her passion for writing.

She writes in several genres, contemporary and historical
romances and young adult novels. You’ll find adventure and elements of danger
in everyone.

Monday, March 18, 2013

I love gray characters. What do I mean by that? I mean the shady characters, the ones who walk the line, the ones you can never say for sure are truly good or evil. The ones who play by their own rules no matter what.
There have been many of these characters over the years, and a few spring instantly to mind. But today I'm visiting the newest of the good/bad boy crew; Hook, from Once Upon a Time.
Growing up watching Disney's version of Peter Pan, if anyone said "Captain Hook" my mind always conjured up the idea of a goofy man, suffering from a range of inadequacies, who spends his life trying to catch this annoying kid. I mean, okay, the kid in question could fly. But still, part of me was always like "get over it, man. Seriously. Get some help and find something else to focus your energies on!"

OUAT's take on Hook... well, there's no other way to put it. The man is sexy. First off, you've got the costume. Its very pirate-like, but not over the top like Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow (but of course, that suited his character.)
Add the wind-blown hair, the masculine shade of a beard, and yes, okay, technically he's wearing eye-liner. But all together, I think this character is the perfect definition of rugged.
As for his actual character? Well, that's almost better than his face.
Hook has kept us guessing from week one. Yeah, he was working with the bad guys to get to Storybrooke, and yes, he wants to kill Mr. Gold/Rumple. But its for the sake of vengeance since Rumple killed Hook's love. And how many books/movies have we seen where the hero's driving motivation is revenge? It doesn't make the hero a bad guy, though some of the things he might do in the name of that vengeance could blur the lines between right and wrong.
Of course I'm hoping there will be some sort of catalyst that will make Hook eventually join the team for good once and for all. The chemistry between him and Emma was obvious. I know I'm not the only fan who is hoping the writers might explore that at some point in the future, even though Emma's ex, who is also Henry's father, has been jammed into the mix. The prospect of an Emma/Hook storyline can almost make me forgive the writers for killing off Sheriff Graham, Emma's first almost-love interest, who was also an intriguing gray character. In the other realm, Graham was the hunter who was sent out to kill Snow White and worked for the evil Queen, but only because she had his heart in a box.
In that way, the two men are very similar characters, so in some respects, Hook has kind of taken Graham's role in the show.
Whichever way you look at it, the creators of OUAT have got us hooked... no pun intended. I know I'm on the edge of my seat week to week, waiting to see where the next installment will take us. As long as there is plenty more Hook to watch, then I'll be a happy viewer!

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

I don't think its clever when they kill off my favorite characters. I don't think its quirky, or surprising, or entertaining. I just plain don't like it. Okay, my dislike of killing characters isn't so black and white, sometimes I can see a plot will be better for killing off certain people. But when I feel like characters are being killed off willy-nilly? Well, then I am less than impressed.
What brought on this particular rant you might be asking? You see, I've been catching up on season 3 of Pretty Little Liars, so if you haven't seen any of it yet, skip the next few paragraphs coz I'm about to spoiler the heck out of that baby. And I'm so annoyed, I've even made a list of shows that have earned my ire over their character-killing antics

1) Pretty Little Liars Fine, it makes sense, but does it really have to?
If you read my top 21 TV kisses post part two, then you'll know that Spencer and Toby on Pretty Little Liars are one of my favorite couples. Spencer and Toby's relationship seemed all roses and chocolates, until in the later half of this season, its revealed that Toby is actually part of the 'A' team who have been blackmailing the girls. On one hand, okay, I could see how it might make sense that secretly all this time, Toby had it in for the girls, since they were partly responsible for him being sent to juvenile detention. But I honestly thought he had grown past that, become a new (dare I say well-adjusted) person and truly loved Spencer. So I refused to believe the revelation. I chose to believe that he had infiltrated the 'A' team to find out who is in charge and who is behind the campaign to torment the girls. I backed this up with a scene earlier in the season where Toby confronts Spencer about her keeping secrets from him, and his threat to "find out for himself."
And then apparently they decided to kill him. But no! I still won't believe it. I'm still in roses and chocolates land, where Toby will return next season, very much alive, to tell Spencer it had all been for her. After the last few episodes, I know enough to realize I'm probably going to need tissues to get through the two final episodes of the season, and will be on the edge of my seat until season 4 starts later in the year.

2) Vampire DiariesSomeone has been killed in some blood-spattering scenario? How un-surprising.
Vampire Diaries gets the award for most characters killed off. Partly I understand that the creators/writers have been (I assume) working toward leaving Elana with no one except the Salvator brothers, especially now that she is also a vampire herself; having a human family just doesn't work. But seriously? Jenna, Ric, and then in the last 2 episodes, Jeremy dying really was the last straw. Not to mention the other who-knows-how many minor characters they've slaughtered over the years. When it became clear that Jeremy was well and truly dead, and that the supernatural ring wasn't going to revive him, I was more angry and incredulous than upset. I may have yelled at the TV screen something along the lines of "are you serious?" Yet, no matter how annoyed I am at the Vampire Diaries record-breaking murder spree, I have to say I'm extremely intrigued as to where things will go from here, especially since Damon used the sire-bond to get Elana to turn off her humanity.
Dare I say she's going to become Katherine version 2.0?

3) Firefly/SerenitySomeone has to die, and it might as well be you.
Do I criticize the master himself, Mr Whedon? Okay, it was inconceivable that the entire Serenity crew would make it through the movie without anyone dying. When Shepard Book was killed, I was kind of annoyed because now we wouldn't find out exactly who/what the man was and why. But I accepted that some storylines had to be let go. The movie was nearly finished, and we had developed a false sense of security that everyone else would come out of that mess in one piece. The way in which Wash died was sudden and totally unexpected. For that, Mr. Whedon is brilliant. If someone had to die, then I commend that it happened the way it did. But you know what? Killing Serenity's pilot only made me more wistful that there is no more Firefly. The crew dynamics would have been totally altered by Wash's death, and I would love to see what became of them later for this. Alas, it will never be, I'm left only with my imagination.

4) RushBeginning of the end.

If you don't live in Australia, then you won't have seen this series. I've always loved a good Aussie cop drama, starting with Blue Heelers when I was a teenager. Blue Heelers had a great run of 13 seasons over 12 years, many characters came and went, though a couple were there for the duration. When it was cancelled in 2006, for the first time in a long time, there was no Australian police drama on TV any longer. So when Rush appeared in 2008, I was over the moon. It wasn't just a cop drama, it was based on a team of specially trained officers, Tactical Response, who dealt with dangerous and unusual situations. And from the very first episode, I wasn't disappointed. Rush ended up with a four season run, though I felt ripped off that the last season was only 12 episodes long. I'm not sure why this show was cancelled, I assume due to the usual problem -- lack of ratings. Yet I thought this show was doing things police dramas hadn't done before. And it was all fine and dandy until they killed off the rookie, Michael. In the beginning, his character was easy to dislike. He was young, cocky, and a bit of an idiot at times. But over the seasons, he grew, experienced things that darkened and toughened his character, until he became one of my favorites on the show. And then they had to kill him. It was the beginning of the end, and the show just wasn't the same once he was gone.

5) SupernaturalDon't hang out with the Winchester brothers unless you want to die.
Is it just me, or is anyone Sam and Dean were ever the least bit close to dead? Seriously, no one has a blackhole of certain death surrounding them like the Winchesters.
First their mom, then Sam's girlfriend, then their Dad, then a half brother they didn't know about, then Ellen and Jo, then the grandparents on their mom's side and some random cousins. After that, they finally killed Bobby. And when there was no one else to kill off in season 8? They brought the grandfather from their dad's side to the future to kill him as well. Lisa and Ben should count themselves lucky that they only had their memories erased. Have I forgotten anyone? Probably, because I've become immune to people dying on this show. For a minute there, I really couldn't believe the writers were killing off Bobby, the last person the boys had besides each other. Their isolation and dependance on one another is now complete, which the Wincest fans probably just love. Apparently this show has been given another go around for a season 9, and I'm wondering if the show has gotten to the point where they really do need some fresh blood (that ironically won't be spilled), a new permanent character or two to liven things up a little.

6) Grey's AnatomyKilling off the innocent for ratings gold.
I'm not saying that anyone in this showdeserves to die, but if I had to pick people who didn't deserve to die, George would have been on top of my list, followed closely by Lexie.
I always thought George was so great because he wasn't like the other characters, there was something about him that always stayed good-hearted and almost innocent, no matter what happened to him. And in actual fact, the way he died, trying to save a woman he didn't even know, was a fabulous reflection of his character. It still sucked though.
And then how can we forget last season's massacre of a plane crash. Okay, it wasn't really a massacre, but they killed off Lexie just when I had hopes that she and Mark were finally going to get their act together. That they then killed off Mark spoke of poetic justice to me, or maybe more like grand romance. It wasn't until Lexie died that Mark realized he couldn't live without her, so gave up fighting his own injures. He might have made it back to civilization, but can I be cliche and say he never really left Lexie's side.

7) Battlestar Galactica I'm confused, who exactly is dead again?
This show has the monopoly on characters not really being dead. Considering half of them were robot clones, they could die as many times as they wanted, and technically should come back the same. Except the character of Sharon/Boomer proved that there could be different personalities residing in different versions of the same body. And if that wasn't confusing enough, we got to watch Kara fly herself into an explosion, and then randomly turn up later, whole and well, not realizing that she'd died. And with the map to Earth to boot. She wasn't a cylon, but she wasn't human either. So what exactly was she? And why did she just disappear at the end of the final episode? I've never watched a show that left me with more questions than answers. And let's not forget all the other characters who died over the seasons. Yes, fighting a war in space against robots is dangerous, but the creators on this show came up with a lot of creative ways to kill people, including cancer and suicide.

8) Once Upon a TimeJust when I had started to have hope, it was crushed into dust. Literally.
I really liked Once Upon a Time from the very first episode. Though I had a few WTF moments, and really wondered if it was going to work, I still enjoyed every second of viewing. And when Emma and Sheriff Graham became a possibility, I enjoyed it even more. From her kiss, the Sheriff remembered who he really was and I was like "awesome!" Until they went and killed him. Seriously, did not see that one coming. Which left my crying "why doesn't Emma get to have a love interest?" I suppose the whole kissing-and-remembering-the-truth thing was a problem, and obviously the writers weren't ready for any of that truth to escape just yet, so Graham had to go... by way of the Queen/Mayor crushing his beating (albeit magical) heart in her fist. I still have a small spark of hope that somehow Graham will return from the dead at some point, but over half way through season 2, it looks like everyone has forgotten about him.

9) Downton AbbeyWell, it was historically correct, I suppose.
Okay, so this show doesn't exactly have a high body count. But the characters they did decide to kill off? Well I didn't like those storylines one little bit.
First off, it looked like for a while that Thomas was going to get a legitimate love interest while helping nurse back to health a wounded soldier. Except it wasn't to be, with this admittedly very minor character committing suicide when he found out he was going to be discharged from the hospital. Disappointing, but not devastating. You want to see devastating? Try the fact that Cybil died after giving birth. Not during the birth. No, she made it through that. But after, just when we started thinking she'd be okay after all, the writers decided to twist the knife they'd already stabbed into our hearts. Leave a newborn baby without a mother? Thanks for the depressing viewing.
Now, I haven't seen season 3 of Downton Abbey yet, but I would have had to be dead myself or living in a cave with no internet, television or radio to avoid the furor over the fact Matthew dies in the final episode. Looking forward to watching season 3? I most certainly am not! ...But I will anyway.

10) True BloodCould it get any bloodier? Oh look, it just did.
Ah yes, how could we not mention the blood-spatter-fest that is True Blood? This show gets the award for bloodiest viewing. Seriously, there have been scenes where characters on this show have literally been covered from head to toe in blood.
But let's get to specifics. First off, yes, it was sad when Sookie's grandmother was killed, and yes, I may have shed a few tears, but I knew that was in keeping with the books. This show has also had more than its fair share of minor characters who've come and gone via a bloody death, with season 5 in particular seeing a lot of (not so random) death. The character I was extremely unimpressed about them killing off? Lafayette's boyfriend, Jesus. I mean, can't just one of these people have some happiness for more than five minutes, without some supernatural freak-show killing them off in some gruesomely bloody manner? No, apparently not. Like with some other shows, I have hope that Lafayette will find a way to bring Jesus back, especially considering the writer's have kind of kept his character going, with the possibility that his ghost at least is still around. Season 6 is shaping up to be really great, especially with super-evil-Bill about to go all primordial-vampire on everyone. I'm personally hoping the writers will bring Eric and Sookie back together this season, as they spend quite a bit of time together in the books, and even have some sort of vampire marriage. Yet these story lines are so far removed from the books now, it's impossible to guess where the writers will take us. One thing is for certain, the blood-spatter-fest is sure to continue.

Thanks for joining me while I ranted. I'm giving some thought to doing a list of characters I think should be killed off... but haven't decided yet if I'm really that blood-thirsty after re-visiting all of the above death scenes.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

“In Ireland we have the Banshee.” Maggie
broke Gray’s daydreaming with a start. “She is the omen of death and the
messenger from the Otherworld.”

She continued in a whisper. “Often she
appears an old hag. Folklore says she may also appear as a stunningly beautiful
woman.” Maggie raised her brow at him, her eyes twinkling with fun.

Gray threw his head back and laughed, and
she joined him. There was no shaking her. He decided he wasn’t going to best
Maggie, and for the first time in a long time he was content with that.

He shifted so she had to settle against
him. He heard her sigh as he wrapped his arm around her. They sat watching the
fire, listening to the sounds of the bush settle for the night. It was peaceful
and, Gray had to admit, romantic. He smiled, fulfilled after a long day’s hard
work, some good bush tucker and a beautiful woman by his side. He had almost
worked up enough courage to kiss her when she shivered, wrapping her arms
around herself.

“I’m going to sleep.” Pulling off her
trainers, she climbed into her swag. “Goodnight.”

About the Author:

Having traveled and lived all over the
world, Cd Brennan now talks with a strange accent, a mix of distant
terminology, a blend of culturally cute but confusing euphemisms that leaves
everyone looking at her with a blank stare. Luckily, her Australian husband
(who she met in Ireland) and her two Aussie/Yankee sons have no problem
understanding her – well, except for the word “NO”.

Now settled back “home” in Michigan, she
enjoys reliving her glory days by writing about them. She considers the last
fifteen years abroad the perfect research for her Love Where You Roam series;
matchmaking women and men from different cultures, even different hemispheres,
helping them find their true one across oceans of difference.

As destiny plays a hand in all the stories,
Cd Brennan truly believes that what is for you, won’t pass you by. She hopes to
inspire others to get out there: “Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the
trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” [Mark Twain]And of course, fall in love.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

When I was searching for the location setting of
Short Soup I instantly thought of Port Stephens. This large natural harbour is
about three hours north of Sydney.
The scenery is stunning, the water is pristine, the atmosphere is laidback.
It’s a popular holiday destination, with lots of tourists flocking there during
the summer season, but it still retains that small town atmosphere.

We’ve been going there every year for twelve years,
courtesy of my partner’s parents, who like to escape the pre-Christmas frenzy
for a fortnight by the sea. There are lots of different beaches to choose from
around Port Stephens. When our children were little we loved the quieter inner
harbour beaches where the water was calmer and we could paddle granddad’s
inflatable boat around. As the children grew older and more adventurous, we
turned to the ocean-side beaches where the rolling surf gave great boogie board
rides.

Mount Tomaree
dominates the southern headland of the harbour entrance. The walk to the summit
is quite steep, but the views from there are spectacular.

Dolphin watching cruises are a popular tourist
activity in Port Stephens. I used one such cruise, plus a deserted beach and
two lusty young people in one of the scenes in Short Soup.

I’ve been in Australia
for **cough** many years. When I first arrived here and travelled around a bit,
I was always surprised at how even the smallest country town had a Chinese
restaurant. Some were great, others not so much.

As I gathered ideas for Short
Soup, I imagined one of these Chinese restaurants situated in a small town in
Port Stephens, a restaurant that had served its local customers faithfully for
years, but was slowly going out of favour as more urbanised visitors arrived
and tastes changed. I imagined the owners as two couples who’d worked at the
restaurant for years and were now moving into semi-retirement, some of them
willingly, some not. I pictured the hero as someone who wants to pull the
restaurant into the twenty-first century and serve food that reflects the
growing cosmopolitan atmosphere of the small town.

Beautiful seaside scenery and Chinese food — a
great combination for a holiday and a multicultural romance!

A story about best friends, childhood dreams, and the healing power of Chinese food…
Toni Lau and Dion Chan were connected from birth — first via their
parents’ jointly-owned restaurant, then via their bone-deep friendship.
But children grow up, and Toni leaves their sleepy hometown looking for
more than it can offer.

Now Toni is back, raw with the knowledge that not all childhood
dreams come true. Dion is on the brink of realising that both his own
ambitions and his childhood friend have the power to derail all of his
hard work. But loving Toni — and winning her love in return — has always
been on his wish list. Can Dion really put her on the back burner while
frying up his chef dreams? Or is it possible that together they can
come up with a recipe for happiness?

Friday, March 1, 2013

Once again, I'm participating in the SFRB Presents, where a bunch of us put up snippets of our sci-fi romance works. Today I'm re-visiting Severance...

Nakita Branson made a deal with a demon to rescue her
best friend. But when things don't go the demon's way, he dumps her off
on a derelict spacestation with no money and no way of getting home.A
year later, Nakita is still searching for her friend, but finds trouble
instead. And the only thing worse than the possibility of getting
killed by a fanatical jerk? A familiar green-eyed demon turning up just
in time to save her.Alastor is back with news that the contract they
agreed to is still intact and until he can find a way to break it, he
is compelled to protect her.The last thing Nakita wants to do is go
anywhere with the demon who has a history of screwing her over. Not only
that, but when he looks at her with that emerald gaze, intense enough
to burn, she feels something she shouldn't for the gorgeous demon.With
the demon monarchy in chaos and enemies all over the universe, they are
forced to rely on each other while unraveling the mystery of two sacred
relics, and the contract that still binds them. But, by the time
Alastor and Nakita find a way to sever their deal, the idea of being
apart may no longer be what either of them wants.

And now for the snippet...Forcing her swimming vision to focus, she glared up at Gerek as he unholstered his ion blaster and aimed it at her face. His
expression looked twisted, enraged; it should have terrified her, but
something just behind him caught her attention, a swirl of silver red
mist that seemed to materialize out of thin air. She blinked, trying to
ignore how everything around her tilted as the mist turned into a man. A
tall, lean, blond man with emerald green eyes.Alastor.A wave of
power, like super-heated energy, rolled over her, reminding her of
every damn second she'd spent with him, causing her body to react in
ways she'd forgotten and didn't want to think about. She pushed up onto
her elbows, not sure who she should be more afraid of, Gerek, or the
demon.Gerek went to take a step toward her, but Alastor reached out,
grabbed Gerek's head, and twisted. The muted cracking of bones breaking
beneath flesh ended before she quite understood what had happened.
Gerek dropped to the ground, his head in an unnatural position, muddy
blue eyes staring off toward nothing. Her breath hitched in her chest,
the throbbing in her head making her stomach lurch. She sucked in a gasp
of air and swallowed over the urge to throw up. Alastor stepped over
Gerek's body, catching her attention when he crouched down in front of
her."You killed him." Her voice came out so high-pitched, she might as well have joined a choir as a soprano.Alastor
flicked an icy green gaze over the body and then looked back at her.
"Yes, that tends to happen when you twist someone's head around too
far."She sat up, wishing the ground would stop moving beneath her. "But, why?"He shrugged. "It's what I do. I'm the Executioner."

And now, to read more exciting sci-fi romance excerpt, head to the SFRB blog.